If you grew up in the mid-to-late 2000s, then you probably watched the Nickelodeon series, Zoey 101. And, if you did, you’re probably familiar with the character Kristin Herrera played.
Keep reading to find out what Kristin Herrera from Zoey 101 is up to now.
Background Info
Kristin Herrera was born on February 21, 1989, in Los Angeles, CA. Growing up, she attended Hillcrest Christian School in Granada Hills. She has three siblings – two brothers, Ryan and Justin – and a sister named Ashley.
Herrera’s acting career started at an early age. She landed her first commercial when she was six years old. The commercial was an advertisement for a phone service company. Then, there was a hiatus before she landed the role of Lourdes Del Torro on General Hospital in 2000.
She had a few other bit parts throughout the early 2000s that included NYPD Blue in 2001, 7th Heaven in 2002, The Bernie Mac Show in 2002, and ER in 2004.
Zoey 101
In 2004, Herrera landed the most notable role of her career playing Dana Cruz on the popular series, Zoey 101.
Scripted around the character of Zoey Brooks, Zoey 101 followed a group of teenagers as they navigated a co-ed boarding school that previously only allowed boys to enroll. Herrera played Dana Cruz, Zoey’s best friend, and roommate. Her character was a tomboy at heart, riding skateboards and being one of the first girls to play on the PCA Basketball team. In Season 2, her character was written off. She only appeared during the first season, totaling 13 episodes.
Though it’s never been confirmed by Nickelodeon themselves, the rumor is that the cast replaced Herrera with fellow Nickelodeon star, Victoria Justice, because the producers thought she looked too old compared to her castmates. Also never confirmed, but heavily rumored was that she pushed one of her costars, Alexa Nikolas due to on-set bullying.
The series first premiered on January 9, 2005, and ended on May 2, 2008. Though the series did not end due to the titular star, Jamie Lynn Spears getting pregnant at 16, the two events have been linked.
What did she do after Zoey 101?
Herrera continued to work after leaving Zoey 101. In 2006, she guest starred as Rose Martinez in an episode of Without a Trace. Then, in 2007, she landed roles in two movies – Freedom Writers as the character Gloria Munez and Karen in Resurrection Mary.
In 2008, after appearing in 15 episodes since 2000, she left General Hospital. Over a decade after originating the role of Karen in Resurrection Mary, she reprised her role in the 2021 film, The Legend of Resurrection Mary. Before the film was released in 2021, Herrera’s last acting role was in 2008.
In terms of acting roles, Herrera has nothing currently in the pipeline. However, in 2020, she did reunite with her Zoey 101 cast members on an episode of All That.
Though it was recently announced that Zoey 101 will be rebooted in a new series called Zoey 102, Herrera, along with several other original cast members including Austin Butler, Victoria Justice, and Paul Butcher are not slated to reprise their roles.
It’s up in the air as to whether or not this will change. However, with the recent backlash slated against the reboot circulating from fans online, it’s possible that Herrera’s chance to reprise her role, if asked back, may not even be an option.
What is Kristin Herrera doing now?
In terms of Herrera’s personal life, she is currently married to Daniel Novak after an on-again, off-again engagement. In November 2021, she announced on her Instagram that she and Daniel were expecting their first child. They later revealed that they had a son named Christopher who was born in May 2022.
In that same year, before giving birth, she and her former costar, Paul Butcher, who played her younger brother in the series, got together for a TikTok that served as a pregnancy update. In late 2022, her former co-star Alexa Nikolas appeared on Christy Carlson Romano’s YouTube series, Vulnerable, where she addressed some of the rumored bullying on set that occurred due to Herrera and why she was written off the series.
For the most part, Herrera keeps her private life offline. Her Instagram is even set to private and she hasn’t updated her Twitter profile since 2012. For the most part, outside of the 2020 reunion she had, she has kept out of the public eye and has not participated in podcasts or interviews.
Related Posts:
